IT Rules | The Media Rumble 2021

In this session of The #MediaRumble held on September 22, Dhanya Rajendran, co-founder and editor-in-chief of The News Minute, sat down with Apar Gupta, lawyer and executive director of the Internet Freedom Foundation; Namrata Maheshwari, Asia Pacific policy council at Axis Now; and MK Venu, founding editor and director of The Wire.

The discussion began with Apar explaining the new #ITRules and the litigation against it. He mentioned the terms of oversight and censorial power wielded by the government as per the rules which were, in turn, introduced by an executive notification without any #legal backing to them.​​

The discussion moved on to the consolidation of government’s control in the new IT rules with a grievance redressal system that places an inter-ministerial committee at its head. Dhanya detailed how traditional media groups are trying to negotiate with the government, while Venu explained the politics behind the rules.

Timecodes:
0:00-5:22 - Lack of unity in the media to oppose the rules
5:22-9:57 - The narrative that the rules are to tackle fake news and child abuse
9:57-14:08 - Digital media and acceptable regulations
14:08-20:34 - Retrospective effect of the IT Rules and impact on digital rights
20:34-24:30 - Compliance requirements under the IT Rules
24:30-27:53 - Need for a message from the courts and solidarity within the media community
27:53-28:13 - Conclusion

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